Speech #1100056149

There are important needs in high skills. but we also understand from the Department of Labor that 8 out of the 10 areas of occupations are basically low skill. what they call low skill. Those may be teachers. they may be managers. or professional people in some areas. but they are basically individuals who have very important skills that are essential to the American economy. We had debate about how we were going to work out that merit system. and in that whole process we worked diligently to find a system that is going to respect the higher skilled but also provides some opportunity for the low skilled as well to be able to gain entry and then to gain what we call the sufficient points to move far forward and able to gain green cards and eventually citizenship. The Ensign amendment absolutely emasculates that amendment and virtually closes out all of the lowskilled possibilities for people who might come on in as temporary workers or may come on in under other provisions of this legislation. Under the Ensign amendment. all of those individuals. the lower skilled. are effectively eliminated and closed out. make no mistake about it.